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Cover: Peter Tchaikovsky – Symphony No. 4 · The Seasons (July-December)

Peter Tchaikovsky

Symphony No. 4

The Seasons (July-December)

The Philadelphia Orchestra
Christoph Eschenbach, conductor
Christoph Eschenbach, piano

ODE 1104-5 · SACD / CD · May 2007

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Track listing

10 tracks · 67:45

Listen to samples on selected tracks.

Peter Tchaikovsky

  1. Symphony No. 4 in F minor, Op. 36 46:49
  2. 1 I. Andante sostenuto - Moderato con anima - Moderato assai, quasi andante - Allegro vivo 19:46
  3. 2 II. Andantino in modo di canzone 11:14
  4. 3 III. Scherzo. Pizzicato ostinato - Allegro 5:40
  5. 4 IV. Finale. Allegro con fuoco 9:55
  6. The Seasons, Op. 37b 21:27
  7. 5 VII. July: Reaper's Song 1:56
  8. 6 VIII. August: Harvest 3:43
  9. 7 IX. Hunting 2:33
  10. 8 X. October: Autumn Song 5:18
  11. 9 XI. November: Troika 2:58
  12. 10 XII. December: Christmas-Tide 4:42

About this recording

The Philadelphia Orchestra and Tchaikovsky - a relationship on which a legend was built... - Tchaikovsky's vibrant and emotionally charged Fourth Symphony resounds here with the magnificent beauty of the lush "Philadelphia Sound" in a white-hot interpretation under Music Director Christoph Eschenbach. As an added bonus this CD also includes the final six piano movements (July-December) from Tchaikovsky's The Seasons with Christoph Eschenbach as pianist. This disc follows the enthusiastic press and success of these artists' previous recording of Tchaikovsky's Fifth Symphony, coupled with the first half of The Seasons (ODE 1076-5).

Features

1 Hybrid SACD (SACD Surround 5.0 / SACD Stereo / CD Stereo - playable on all SACD and CD players); booklet with liner notes in English, French and German; luxurious slipcase

Press

In terms of the actual performance, the beautiful recorded sound, and the warmth of the interpretation, this recording belongs on the short list of the many versions available. (...) Eschenbach's completion of the cycle The Seasons (...) makes it among the finest in the catalog.
Peter Burwasser, Fanfare Magazine, September/October 2007

The famous strings of the Philadelphia Orchestra receive their full due in both the original scoring and in the hi-res surround mix. (...) Polyhymnia International handled the recording and it’s of demo quality.
John Sunier, Audiophile Audition, October 2007

Ravishingly played, it's a performance as much about desire and memory as about fate, with a particularly spectral account of the first movement and an unusually erotic version of the Andantino. (...) As before, however, the real treat The Seasons, which Eschenbach plays with such exquisite grace and poetic intensity that he sweeps away all those commonly held assumptions that the work itself is slight.
Tim Ashley, The Guardian, June 8, 2007

Tchaikovsky's Symphony No. 4 from Philadelphia begins with a suitably emphatic first movement, but receives such convincingly personal treatment in subsequent movements that, with the added appeal of excellent surround sound, the release is seriously competitive in the vast Tchaikovsky discography.
David Patrick Stearns, The Philadelphia Inquirer, May 23, 2007

The artists

The Philadelphia Orchestra

Founded in 1900, The Philadelphia Orchestra has distinguished itself as one of the leading orchestras in the world through a century of acclaimed performances, historic international tours, and best-selling recordings. Six music directors have piloted the Orchestra through its first century, giving the ensemble an unparalleled cohesiveness and unity in artistic leadership. Fritz Scheel and Carl Pohlig served as its first music directors. In 1912 Leopold Stokowski was appointed conductor. Leading a series of major world and U.S. premieres and making widely acclaimed recordings, Stokowski firmly established Philadelphia's prominence in American classical music.

Full biography

Christoph Eschenbach

Held in high esteem by the world's foremost orchestras and opera houses for his commanding presence, versatility, and consummate musicianship, Christoph Eschenbach has also been acclaimed for his creative insight and dynamic energy, as a conductor, collaborator, and ardent champion of young musicians. In autumn 2010, he assumed the music directorship of the National Symphony Orchestra and the specially created position of music director of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, both in Washington, D.C.

Full biography

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